Free Prostate Cancer Screenings for Men Over 40 During Men�s Health Week!
Donors Eligible to Win a Golf Foursome!

June 13 to 17, 2012

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Any man 40 years old or older who donates blood, platelets or plasma at a Community Blood Services� donor center or mobile blood drive from Wednesday, June 13 through Sunday, June 17 can request a complimentary PSA assay test � a simple prostate cancer screening test that can help detect potential disease � at the time of his donation.

Donors also will be entered into a raffle to win a golf foursome at Preakness Hills Country Club in Wayne, New Jersey when they donate from June 13 through 17.

The free health screening is being offered to donors who donate at the Paramus or Lincoln Park donor centers in New Jersey, or at the New Windsor donor center or Florida Fire Department blood drive in New York, and at all other donation sites and blood drives in both states.

"Offering complimentary PSA testing during Men's Health Week is one way for us to say thank you to our donors and show our commitment to the health of our community members," said Karen Ferriday, director of community affairs at Community Blood Services. She reminded donors they would also get non-fasting glucose and cholesterol screenings, as well as their blood pressure and hemoglobin checked, at the time of their donations.

"We're also asking volunteer blood donors who visit us throughout the week to 'Wear Blue' as part of the national movement to remind men of the importance of staying healthy and to let men know we care," Ferriday said.

Men's Health Week, which runs June 11 through 17, was started to raise awareness and encourage men to make choices that will enable them to live better, live healthier and live longer. According to the Men's Health Network, there is an ongoing and increasing crisis in the health and well-being of men. Due to a lack of awareness, poor health education and culturally induced behaviors, men�s health and well-being have been deteriorating steadily, with men living five years less than women.

Donors can click here for hours and locations and click here to make an appointment to donate, or they can call 201-251-3703. Appointments are needed to donate platelets at one of the New Jersey collection sites or at the Florida Fire Department drive.

Ferriday said Community Blood Services needs continuous blood and platelet donations to ensure there is enough blood on its shelves to help patients at the 20 hospitals it serves in northern New Jersey and southern New York State. There has been an ongoing shortage of O negative blood, as well as AB male plasma, used to treat burn and trauma victims, and platelets, used to treat cancer patients, she said.

PSA (Prostate-Specific Antigen) is a natural protein produced by normal prostate glands in healthy men. The PSA screening measures PSA levels in the blood. An elevated PSA blood level may be a warning sign in men for prostate cancer, other urinary tract diseases or conditions such as benign enlargement of the prostate gland. In 2012 about 242,000 new cases of prostate cancer will be diagnosed and 28,000 men are expected to die of the disease.

Donors will receive a letter with their PSA test results in the mail. Men with elevated PSA levels can then have their primary care physicians review those results.